Officials: Newburgh Walmart Market will not be built

JASON CLARK / COURIER & PRESS A Neighborhood Market Walmart may be built on the west side of Newburgh in the near future. Walmart Real Estate Business Trust is petitioning to rezone a parcel of land along Indiana 662 across from Caseyâ s General Store, near the intersection of Ellersbusch Road.

The Newburgh town attorney says the controversial Walmart Neighborhood Market will not be developed in Newburgh.

Chris Wischer said Ned and Helen Williams, who own the property on which Walmart planned to develop a Neighborhood Market, were told that Walmart is no longer interested in purchasing the land.

The property was rezoned from agriculture to commercial, C-2, about a year ago.

Wischer said Walmart's attorney as well as the Williams' realtor told him that Walmart isn't interested in the purchase. He said he wasn't given a reason why.

'Given the length of time that's passed … at this point, I'm not really surprised now,' Wischer said.

In January 2015, the town of Newburgh received a rezoning petition for land southeast of the intersection of Indiana 662 and Ellerbusch Road.

The rezoning caused controversy in the historic Warrick County town. Dozens of town residents opposed the rezoning, and the plan commission members unanimously gave an unfavorable recommendation twice to the Newburgh Town Council.

The Town Council still approved the rezoning in late June, however, with four of the five council members voting in favor. Councilwoman Anne Rust Aurand, who was a member of the plan commission at the time, was the lone 'no' vote.

Wischer said it may be difficult for another business to take over the land.

'It was zoned with a pretty substantial use and development commitment,' Wischer said of the rezoning. 'For all practical purposes, it would have to go through the rezoning to amend or remove the use and development commitment, unless the user intends to build exactly what Walmart was going to build.'

Four plan commission members specifically resigned after the Town Council voted in favor of the rezoning, thereby going against the commission's recommendation.

'We had three meetings, open to the public, and only two people … spoke for it,' said Jim Moore, who was the president of the Newburgh Plan Commission during the rezoning. 'There were a lot of people in this town that felt adamantly against it, and we listened to them.'

The Williams' attorney did not immediately return a call from the Courier & Press.

As part of the now-abandoned rezoning deal, Walmart had agreed to donate land to the town for phase three of the Newburgh Rivertown Trail.

That will not happen now.

'We have been working on a plan B with the property owners in case this happened,' Wischer said. 'Still working on it, but (we) think we are in good shape.'

The Resignations

Moore submitted his resignation at 5:48 a.m. June 24, the day after the Town Council meeting that rezoned the Williams' property for the market.

His letter was two sentences.

'Please consider this email as my resignation from the Newburgh Plan Commission effective immediately. I thank you for your help over the last few years and wish you well in the future. Jim Moore'

'Oh my… this is the wrong plan commission member to resign,' Councilwoman Leanna Hughes emailed her fellow council members after receiving Moore's resignation, according to emails the Courier & Press obtained through an Indiana Public Access Act request.

Then Town Council President Bill Kavanaugh echoed Hughes' thoughts.

'Really hate that. He is great. We will move on,' he wrote to his fellow town council members.

Plan Commission member Kris Setzekorn emailed the town manager at the time, saying she was also considering resigning

'The Council knew from the beginning they were going to approve the rezoning — why else (would) they not accept our nominee for the siting (Site Review) committee. Our many hours were wasted — I have so little discretionary time, that this is the true insult.'

Hap Hanson was the second plan commission member to resign. He did so about noon June 25.

'There are other ways for me to serve my community, I'm sure,' reads part of his email sent to former Town Manager Lori Buehlman and others.

Aurand, who was the council liaison for the plan commission at the time as well as a voting member, sent an email to all the commission members and asked them to talk to her before they resigned.

'Not to try to talk you out of it. I completely understand your frustration and that of our audiences over the last four months,' she wrote. 'Thank you for going down this bumpy road with me. You all showed great courage and were thoughtful in your deliberation.'

Setzekorn asked Aurand if there was a good reason to stay on the plan commission. Aurand said she doubted anyone else's resignation would make a difference.

Candi Burress was the last to resign from the plan commission.

Kavanaugh told the Courier & Press in June 2015 that he was disappointed with all the resignations, and thought everyone agreed to disagree.

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